BRAND MARKETING / FEATURE
INDUSTRY VETERANS SHARE INSIGHTS ON SUCCESSFULLY MARKETING A BRAND IN RURAL
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t the beginning of the 20th century, Mahatma Gandhi had proudly stated that ‘The soul of India lives in its villages.’ The saying stands true even today, as Rural India houses nearly 70 percent of the country’s population and accounts for about 50 per cent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP). Furthermore, the Rural Hinterlands today account for around 55 percent of the manufacturing GDP and rural areas were host to nearly 75 percent of all new factories built in the last decade. Additionally, the global information giant Nielsen has estimated that the FMCG market in rural India will mark US$ 100 billion by 2025, from the current level of US$ 12 billion. Interestingly, even as Rural India is changing in terms of its global standing, socio-economic structures, and consumerscape, marketing in the rural ecosystem has still not evolved. Brands still relate rural with an old-style consumer base that hasn’t caught up with time. To most of them, rural remains an untapped market that occupies a minuscule chunk of their overall marketing budget. The attitude is appalling as the India Brand Equity Foundation in one of its recent research has revealed that amongst the leading retailers, Dabur generates over 40-45 percent of its domestic revenue from rural sales whereas Hindustan Unilever’s rural revenue accounts for 45 percent of its overall sales. The statistic clearly reveals that there is a massive opportunity for brands in rural however, not all of them
Rural India is vast and highly heterogeneous. Travel a few kilometers in any direction, the culture, nuances, your consumer and the relevance of your product in the life of rural consumers changes. On one hand affluence levels with various societal changes and exposure to latest gadgets, rural consumer is becoming more and more ‘Urban.’ Whether it is having smartphones, splurging on data or consuming latest farming content through YouTube and WhatsApp, the difference between cities and rural seems to be blurring with time. RAHUL KHURANA RURAL MARKETING PROFESSIONAL
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APRIL–JUNE 2018 EXPERIENTIAL MARKETING
have an idea on how to efficiently market their brands in the segment. In this exclusive feature at ExM, we put Rural India under the microscope and speak to veterans to decode the customer profile in rural and what ingredients make for a successful brand activation in the market. CHARACTERISTICS THAT DEFINE A RURAL CONSUMER TODAY! Commenting on the physiognomies that define a rural consumer today, Rahul Khurana, a rural marketing veteran having worked with agencies like Geometry Global and Ogilvy in his 11 years of professional experience shares, “Rural India is vast and highly heterogeneous. Travel a few kilometers in any direction, the culture, nuances, your consumer and the relevance of your product in the life of rural consumers changes. On one hand affluence levels with various societal changes and exposure to latest gadgets, rural consumer is becoming more and more ‘Urban.’ Whether it is having smartphones, splurging on data or consuming latest farming content through YouTube and WhatsApp, the difference between cities and rural seems to be blurring with time. Also, the spending pattern between urban and rural may also appear to be fast converging. Interestingly, on the other hand, there is still a vast geography yet to be tapped and people there are still living within limited means. In hindsight, Rural today can be best described as an exciting pool of emerging consumers that no marketer should ignore.”